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Sunday, February 4, 2007

It's a Wrap eBay auctions - Week 8 Preview

Week 8 Preview

Week 8 of the It's a Warp Star Trek auctions is a good week, focusing on Star Trek: The Next Generation and costumes from Star Trek V (With a smattering of props from ST: Insurrection). This means the first Kirk, Spock and McCoy uniforms we have seen. Though not complete, they are nice, and you have to remember that costumes of the big 3 are very hard to come by.

As I mentioned in my previous blog entry, IAW is doing a nice job of the "themed" listings, listing groups of costumes and props from a specific show or shows. The movies tend to be listed with items from one of the shows. I think this gives people a nice rhythm as some weeks you are going after items from your favorite show, and then you may have a week or two off to gather your resources! Being a Star Trek fan just got a lot more expensive and this will last for months.

I think this week will see a huge dichotomy of items, as there are a dozen or so great hero pieces and then a lot of less desirable guest costumes from The Next Generation. As of Sunday, there were 74 out of 100 items UNDER $ 300. That is unusual, and I think it is because the product mix is very diverse and heavily weighted towards less desirable guest costumes and few props of great interest.

Kirk's Commando costume from Star Trek V is the top item so far. It will most likely stay that way. Incomplete as it has no belt or rank insignia, it is none the less a great piece and easily completed with replica parts. I think the attraction here is that it is a rare costume, and easily more affordable than a Kirk "Wrath of Khan" style red jacket and pants (which went for $ 24,000 at Christie's). There was one of these at Christie's which went for $ 3,000 without the white undershirt or belt and insignia, like this one. This audience on eBay has not seen anything from Kirk yet and so this one could easily go over $ 4,000. Note that the white turtleneck undershirt is not correct for this costume, as the one in the movie had the notched front. This one may be a Shatner, but not for this costume.

Now there is also a Kirk Climbing outfit, the complete one having gone at Christie's, this one is lacking the boots, the belt and the talc bag. (climbers use Talc to add grip to their fingers). It is cheap right now, but it is a Kirk and this could be a steal. Worth a look.

This costume from Star Trek: Generations is listed as "Gates # 2" and it should be noted that the complete version of this was sold in lot # 86 that had 5 of these from different characters. Of course Gates McFadden's character took a dip in the ocean courtesy of Data, and so would need more than one costume.

This is a beautiful costume, and should go over $ 3,000 easy. at Christie's this lot went for $ 6,600 for 5 of these that were complete with hats! That was one of the steals of that auction. This costume is already at $ 1,756 on Sunday.

If "Tapestry" isn't one of your top 5 favorite Next Gen episodes, it should be! Why? because it is the Star Trek episode, that more than any other teaches a life lesson that we all should appreciate, and it is fun and interesting, and we see Picard make the biggest leap in his personal growth. I LOVE this episode. Along with "Inner Light" it is the bets written of all the Next Gen Episodes.

So this costume has a lot of meaning, and I am obviously not the only one to think so! Bidding is over $ 1,200 on Sunday. This is the costume Picard is wearing when we see him lying on the Med table at the beginning of the episode; his artificial heart damaged by a weapon's blast. I see this costume going over $ 3,000.

Spock Star Trek V Campfire CostumeOK, Star Trek V was weak. We all agree on that (except one of my friends who loves it - you know who you are!). But there were moments in that movie that were good, and I think the campfire scene at the end was one. This is Spock's costume from that scene. I mean Spock playing his Harp and roasting "Marsh Melons"! I love this outfit for how different it is than any other Spock costume. Now, that doesn't mean I am bidding on it, because it doesn't fit into my costume collection's theme. And I am not sure how much everyone else will love it, but this should go for between $ 1,500 and $ 2,500.

Other Great costumes

Well, there is a McCoy Commando and Uhura Commando from Star Trek V. Both nice, but needing belts. The McCoy also has the stunt man's pants, not DeForest Kelley's, so know that before bidding. If you win these, you can get the repro belts easily. There is a nice Ensign Ro, one of TNG's most interesting recurring characters. Also a La Forge, a Deanna Troi and a Crusher. All good costumes. You might get a reasonable price on these as the big money will be chasing the Kirk, Spock and McCoy as well as the Crusher.

Don't get me started on how much I hate the Anbo-Jyutsu costumes. Oh, the costumes are cool, but that whole scene is one of the WORST scenes in TNG and just showcased how bad the writing was at times in Season's one and two. Stop making up stupid future sports like "Paresi Squares". There hasn't been a new sport in the last 100 year's that means anything and there won't be some new stupid martial art in a future where 100 million people die in World War III unless one of the Eugenic supermen thinks it up while conquering half the world. (sorry...rant over)

And while I am on things I hate, there is the Wesley Crusher "Acting Ensign" uniform. That is another Gene Roddenberry-ism I hated. How many times will that kid save the Enterprise? I finally liked him when he screwed up with red Squad in "First Duty". This costume is only the shirt, and it ISN'T his acting ensign costume as IAW claims, but the one he wore before Picard gave him his pseudo field commission. After that he wore a two-tone grey costume as "acting ensign".

So the high end of the costume selection is very heavy this week. This means there could be some good buys as there is only so much money out there. I think we are seeing that prices are coming down on less that the very best each week. So look for the good buys in the secondary characters.

The guest star costumes are interesting, but should all go cheap.

Props

The Star Trek: Insurrection PADD is the top prop in a week with few props of interest. it is a rarer lighted version and shows the "Briar Patch" from that movie. Very cool, and this could go close to $ 2,000.

There is a Klingon Bat'leth, but it is made of foam rubber. If you have been reading my posts, you know I stay away from these due to their tendency to degrade over time.

After that there is nothing noteworthy, but a bunch of Son'a and Starfleet LCARS displays, which if you get them cheap, might be a good deal. They would look nice in a Star Trek display.

Don't overpay on props this week. Be patient as there is so much more to come.

OVERVIEW

The value is in the costumes this week. The auction is deep in good costumes. Bid wisely and focus on one or two costumes you really want. Hopefully you are being smart and bidding within your means. Remember, be patient, and you will get what you want at a good price.

Feel free to email me with questions or post a comment here! PLEASE include your email if you post a comment here if you want a response, as I don't always want to respond to individual questions on the Blog, but happy to do so if you email me.